* As a search for clues to the fate of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 resumed in the waters off Vietnam on Monday, air-safety and antiterror authorities on two continents appeared equally stumped about what direction the probe should take.

* Western officials are scrambling to loosen Russia's energy stranglehold on Ukraine, the latest sign of growing pressure on Moscow to end the crisis.

The options being considered by officials from Brussels to Washington include larger exports of U.S.-made natural gas, reversing the flow of natural gas through pipelines from Western Europe back into Ukraine, and accelerating plans across Europe to buy more energy from countries other than Russia.

* A group of newspaper publishers has put the cars.com online marketplace up for sale for as much as $3 billion, hoping to cash in on booming values for e-commerce sites, people familiar with the plans said.

* Washington's effort to push banks out of the mortgage-servicing business is propelling the handling of customers' loans into companies such as hedge funds and nonbank financial firms.

* United Rentals Inc agreed to acquire four companies supplying pumping equipment to the energy industry and other users for a total of $780 million.

* An Environmental Protection Agency review board was pressured by officials at the agency to soften its challenges to an EPA plan for dealing with a highly contaminated radioactive waste site in a St. Louis suburb, a former board member and other people familiar with the matter said.

* Federal energy regulators plan to impose new security rules on electric utilities to make sure they protect major substations and other facilities critical to the operation of the electric grid.

FT

Interpol warned about a global security weakness after it emerged that two passengers had boarded a missing Malaysia Airlines flight with stolen passports.

Google's Android Chief, Sundar Pichai, said the company was getting ready to use its Android software for wearable technology like sophisticated watches, fitness trackers and even "smart jackets."

Swedish Music Company Spotify has secured a $200 million credit facility from lenders. The move has fuelled speculation it is getting ready for a multi billion dollar float.

Seth Klarman, the head of the $27 billion Baupost Group, said investors were not ready for an end to central banks reversing a five-year experiment in ultra-loose money and were underplaying risk.

Social Media group Twitter Inc is looking to increase its advertising revenue from outside of the Unites States and was prepared to be aggressive in acquiring advertising companies and forming new partnerships.

NYT

* BlackRock, the world's largest asset-management company, said on Monday that it had hired Helen Zhu as a managing director and head of its China equities business.

* A federal jury on Friday found Jesse C. Litvak, a former senior trader at the Jefferies Group, guilty of deceiving his customers about the prices of mortgage-backed securities he sold to them after the financial crisis.

* New York Public Radio will announce on Monday that it has received a $10 million grant from the Jerome L. Greene Foundation, which it says is the largest single gift ever made to a public radio station.

* Microsoft Corp is betting that a new game, Titanfall, will be enough of a hit to improve sales of its flagship gaming console Xbox One, whose sales are trailing those of a machine from Sony, Microsoft's main rival.

* The British financier Guy Hands has agreed to end a lawsuit against Citigroup Inc in the United States, though the legal battle may continue in England.

* Tencent Holdings Ltd, one of China's biggest Internet companies, said on Monday it would pay $215 million for a 15 percent stake in the Chinese e-commerce company JD.com.

Canada

THE GLOBE AND MAIL

* The disappearance of a Malaysian jetliner is an "unprecedented aviation mystery," a senior official said on Monday, with a massive air and sea search now in its third day failing to find any confirmed trace of the plane or the 239 people aboard. (http://r.reuters.com/rec57v)

* As Ukrainians brace for a tumultuous week, Russia and the United States have increased the tension over Ukraine, with President Barack Obama inviting the country's new prime minister for a high-profile visit. (http://r.reuters.com/sec57v)

Reports in the business section:

* Some telecommunications companies are urging the federal government to change the format of next year's spectrum auction, arguing it is too complex and discriminates against smaller players. (http://r.reuters.com/tec57v)

NATIONAL POST

* Vietnamese searchers on ships worked throughout the night but could not find a rectangular object spotted on Sunday afternoon that was thought to be one of the doors of a Malaysia Airlines passenger jet that went missing more than two days ago. (http://r.reuters.com/vec57v)

* Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper departed on Sunday for South Korea, where he is widely expected to complete another long round of free-trade negotiations that his critics were denouncing as secretive and potentially bad for Canadian workers. (http://r.reuters.com/huc57v)

FINANCIAL POST

* A growing number of startups in Canada and the U.S. are capitalizing on shifting attitudes and legalities around marijuana (http://r.reuters.com/fuc57v)

China

PEOPLE'S DAILY

- The Chinese government will send a working group on Monday morning to Malaysia for handling the aftermath of the missing Malaysian Airlines flight.

CHINA SECURITIES JOURNAL

- China's weak foreign trade and consumer price index data for February, published over the weekend, may push the government to take some steps to boost economic growth, economists said.

- A research report by the State Information Centre under the cabinet forecast China's gross domestic product may grow 7.5 percent in the first quarter, with the consumer price index (CPI) rising about 2.4 percent.

CHINA DAILY

- Chinese authorities are investigating the vice governor of south-western Yunnan province, according to the ruling party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. Shan Peiping is suspected of serious violations of disciplines and laws, often used in China to refer to corruption.

- The number of Chinese students who will take the punishing Gaokao examination at the end of high school is set to drop to its lowest level in eight years, as increasing numbers of students look to study overseas. An estimated 55,139 students will take the test this year.

SHANGHAI SECURITIES

- China will aim to improve mechanisms to delist poorly performed listed companies this year, said Xiao Gang, Chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

- Conditions are now mature for Chinese stock exchanges to resume the same-day stock trading system, known as T+1 system, said Gui Minjie, Chairman of the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

SHANGHAI DAILY

- Cooperation between government departments is key to tackling China's often hazardous levels of pollution, Zhang Quan, director of Shanghai's Environment Protection Bureau, said at the ongoing annual session of the National People's Congress, or China's parliament, in Beijing.

Britain

The Telegraph

BITCOIN EXCHANGE MTGOX 'FACED 150,000 HACK ATTACKS EVERY SECOND'

Troubled Bitcoin exchange MtGox was reportedly attacked 150,000 times per second by hackers in the days leading up to its collapse last month

CO-OP DEFENDS PLANS FOR BUMPER CEO PAY PACKET

The Co-operative Group has defended plans to pay new Chief Executive Euan Sutherland more than 3.6 million pounds for his first year in the job.

The Guardian

U.S. ECONOMY ADDS 175,000 JOBS BUT UNEMPLOYMENT RATE RISES TO 6.7 PCT

The US unemployment rate rose to 6.7 percent in February, even as the economy added more jobs than economists had expected.

The Times

BANK SHAKE-UP SPARKS SURGE OF NEW LENDERS

Britain's historically closed banking market is facing a competitive overhaul over the next two years, with as many as ten new lenders set to receive a licence.

ENERGY BILLS COULD GO UP IF UKRAINE TURBULENCE WORSENS

Energy bills could go up if the instability in Ukraine drags on, a minister warned yesterday, as others scrambled to deny that there was "tacit acceptance" of the Russian takeover of the Crimean peninsula.

The Independent

TWITTER UK REVENUES CLIMB TO 1 MILLION STG A WEEK

Twitter is now making more than 1 million pounds a week in revenues in Britain as its growth accelerates in its biggest market outside America, its annual report revealed today.

Sky News

TESCO PAVES WAY FOR FINANCE DIRECTOR'S EXIT

Tesco is preparing the ground for the departure of its finance director amid tensions with its chief executive as the retail giant attempts to reverse the declining fortunes of its core UK operations.

Fly On The Wall 7:00 AM Market Snapshot

ECONOMIC REPORTS

No major domestic economic reports are scheduled for today.

ANALYST RESEARCH

Upgrades

AGL Resources (GAS) upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at BMO CapitalARM Holdings (ARMH) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at William BlairAlcatel-Lucent (ALU) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at BMO CapitalAlon USA Energy (ALJ) upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Credit SuisseArcher Daniels (ADM) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at BMO CapitalAstec (ASTE) upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at RW BairdCharter (CHTR) upgraded to Buy from Hold at JefferiesDreamWorks Animation (DWA) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at B. RileyEdwards Lifesciences (EW) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Wells FargoEvolving Systems (EVOL) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at B. RileyFirst Security (FSGI) upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at Raymond JamesLHC Group (LHCG) upgraded to Sector Perform from Underperform at RBC CapitalTelefonica Brasil (VIV) upgraded to Neutral from Sell at CitigroupUIL Holdings (UIL) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA/MerrillVeeco (VECO) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at UBS

Downgrades

athenahealth (ATHN) downgraded to Underperform from Perform at OppenheimerDeutsche Telekom (DTEGY) downgraded to Hold from Buy at JefferiesDuPont Fabros (DFT) downgraded to Hold from Buy at JefferiesExpeditors (EXPD) downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at FBR CapitalFidus Investment (FDUS) downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Raymond JamesKB Home (KBH) downgraded to Underperform from Buy at BofA/MerrillMeritage Homes (MTH) downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at BofA/MerrillNational Retail Properties (NNN) downgraded to Market Perform at FBR CapitalRealty Income (O) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at BofA/MerrillStaples (SPLS) downgraded to Hold from Buy at BB&T

Initiations

Concert Pharmaceuticals (CNCE) initiated with a Buy at UBSConcert Pharmaceuticals (CNCE) initiated with an Outperform at JMP SecuritiesEagle Pharmaceuticals (EGRX) initiated with a Buy at CantorEagle Pharmaceuticals (EGRX) initiated with an Overweight at Piper JaffrayFlexion (FLXN) initiated with an Outperform at BMO CapitalHSN, Inc. (HSNI) initiated with a Buy at UBSHarman (HAR) initiated with an Outperform at Raymond JamesInstalled Building Products (IBP) initiated with a Buy at Deutsche BankInstalled Building Products (IBP) initiated with a Neutral at SunTrustLiberty Interactive (LINTA) initiated with a Buy at UBSNorth Atlantic Drilling (NADL) initiated with an Overweight at BarclaysTalmer Bancorp (TLMR) initiated with an Outperform at Keefe BruyetteTalmer Bancorp (TLMR) initiated with an Outperform at RBC Capital